Space Business Podcast #154 | Optical Communications | JF Morizur, Cailabs
Nov 10, 2025
JF Morizur, Founder and CEO of Cailabs, explores the revolutionary potential of optical communications for space-to-Earth links. He discusses how these laser-based connections outperform traditional radio links in security and bandwidth. Morizur elaborates on the challenges of atmospheric interference and the innovative solutions Cailabs is developing to harness tight beams effectively. He also highlights the growing demand for optical tech in defense and Earth observation, and envisions a future where hybrid architectures will dominate the landscape.
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What Cailabs Builds
- Optical ground stations use lasers to connect satellites to Earth, offering an alternative to radio links.
- Cailabs focuses on ground infrastructure and has deployed stations connecting with satellites worldwide.
Why Optical Beats RF Limits
- Optical links avoid RF spectrum allocation, interference, and jamming problems inherent to radio.
- They also sidestep Shannon-limit scaling issues, enabling much higher bandwidth per link.
Tight Beams Make Optical Secure
- Laser beams from LEO produce spot sizes of meters versus kilometers for RF, making interception and detection far harder.
- Increased range narrows the beam further, boosting data efficiency and security.